- Postal banking disagreement: Hearing postponed
The appellate court in Cologne has pushed back its decision in the compensation feud between Deutsche Bank and ex-Postbank shareholders to October 23rd, stating further deliberations are necessary. Initially, the court feared to declare its verdict on this particular Wednesday (Case No: 13 U 166/11 and 13 U 231/17).
A representative from Deutsche Bank commented: "We've always known this would be a convoluted process. So, we're fine with the court granting more time to scrutinize the situation." The representative for the plaintiffs, Jan D. Bayer, whose clients supposedly constitute a substantial portion of the claim amount, shared: "It appears the Senate wishes to prevent the case from being escalated to the Federal Court of Justice, and provides the bank with an extra two months to negotiate a fair, all-encompassing settlement."
No shift in the bank's risk standing is noticeable. "More interest continues to accumulate in the tens of millions," Bayer communicated to Deutsche Presse-Agentur upon request.
The bank has earmarked 1.3 billion euros.
This predicament emerges from Deutsche Bank's major acquisition of Postbank in 2010. The controversy revolves around the validity of the compulsory acquisition of minority shareholders that took place in 2010, and whether Deutsche Bank had effective control over the Bonn institution prior to the public takeover proposal for Postbank in 2010 – implying that shareholders deserved a larger compensation.
During the hearing in late April, the court seemed inclined to side with the plaintiffs. As a result, Deutsche Bank provisionally allocated 1.3 billion euros. This allocation resulted in a 143 million euro loss for the DAX company during the second quarter.
"The parties have yet to reach a settlement within the prescribed time frame," the court explained. "Given that the Senate's deliberations have not concluded, the announcement date in both proceedings has been rescheduled to October 23, 2024," it concluded.
The financial sector is closely watching the ongoing compensation dispute between Deutsche Bank and ex-Postbank shareholders, as its outcome could set a precedent for similar cases in the future. The decision in this complex case, involving the financial sector's regulatory environment and corporate acquisition practices, has been postponed by the appellate court.
